In Some Kind of Hate an angry young man with a hair-trigger temper finds himself in a support group for troubled teens located out in the desert. Our main character finds himself stuck among a rogues gallery of bullies, sociopaths and self-mutilators. Things begin to sour very quickly when an bullying incident results in the ghost of a dead teen being summoned to kill everyone in the camp.
Some Kind of Hate is the debut film from director Adam Egypt Mortimer. The film is a plays on the supernatural slasher formula that we are all very familiar with. The cast here is just as effective as any ensemble we’ve seen in the multitude of teenage horror movies that have been coming out since the 70s, and it’s good to see that the old tropes still hold up under good direction.
So our hero of the film named Lincoln gets sent to this counseling compound out in the desert and immediately he gets picked on and abused. He lashes out and manages to summon a ghost of a girl who died at the camp. Kids and counselors are killed off as the specter uses her ability to kill via cutting herself with razors. Every time she makes a cut, her victim begins to bleed. Lincoln and his new girlfriend Kaitlin then decide to stop the killing any way they can.
Ronen Rubinstein does a good job playing the brooding and destructive Ronen and his portrayal works well to highlight the characters ‘ticking time bomb’ anger issues. Some of the effects are heavy on CG, but the practical gore and splatter are done well for the film’s budget. Good performances from Grace Phipps, Spencer Breslin and Sierra McCormick make the film very palatable for what it is. Despite some of the subject matter being a little difficult due to the nature of subjects like self-mutilation and malicious bullying, this is a solid slasher worthy of attention.
Hawkins’ Rating:
Out of a Possible 5 Stars